184 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
November 19, 1892. 
white, and the large buds and outside surface of the 
flowers being also white, at a little distance one plant 
appears to bear blossoms of several different colours 
at one time. Occasionally we find a Centrosema 
with pure white flowers, or with petals broadly mar¬ 
gined and feathered with white. A most attractive 
feature of this plant is the way in which the flowers 
look you in the face. Every imaginative person sees 
faces in the Pansy, and the Centrosema is even more 
suggestive. Therefore, “ Look at Me " would not be 
a bad name for it The blossoms are produced in 
great abundance, sometimes from six to eight in a 
cluster. The foliage of the Centrosema is graceful 
and delightfully fragrant. The stems are slender, 
curving and twining over any support with the 
utmost grace. They are not much larger than good- 
sized knitting needles, but they often climb to the 
height of six or eight feet. I predict for this plant 
large sales and great popularity, and anticipate for 
it, when once the florists take it in hand, as great a 
variety and delicacy of colouring as we find in the 
Sweet-pea. It is well adapted for many gardening 
purposes, blooms until frost, and if potted will no 
doubt flower freely in the house.— Wm. F. Basset, 
New Jersey, in American Gardening. 
THE USES OF CHEMICAL MANURES IN THE 
PRODUCTION OF FRUIT. 
At the opening meeting of the Liverpool section 
of the Society of Chemical Industry, on the 2nd 
inst., Mr. Henry Brunner gave his inaugural ad¬ 
dress on the “ Use of chemical manures for the pro¬ 
duction of fruit.” After referring to the importance 
of fruit growing for profit in land cultivation, Mr. 
Brunner pointed out that one-fourth of the cost of 
the production of the fruit is due to the necessary 
supply of manure, and that although he was uncer¬ 
tain whether natural manures could be completely 
replaced by chemical, he had no doubt that a large 
proportion of it could be with advantage to the crop, 
and economy to the cultivator. This statement was 
supported by the lecturer's own experiments, especi¬ 
ally in regard to the growth of Strawberries. Fur¬ 
ther advantages of chemical manuring consisted in 
its being more certain in effect, and more convenient 
both to handle and to distribute. At the same time, 
Mr. Brunner did not recommend the fruit grower to 
discard the use of farmyard manure altogether, but 
that he should adopt some system of rotation of 
manures most suitable to the soil and products 
grown. The paper concluded with a most interesting 
critique of the best forms of chemical manures to 
employ, and their relative values. 
ASTER VERSICOLOR NANUS. 
Those who object to tall Asters would probably find 
something more suitable in this variety, which flowers 
late and attains a height of only 12 in. The stems 
branch freely and produce a great quantity of flowers, 
which are white when they first expand, but soon 
deepen to rose. As there are flowers in all stages of 
colour upon the plant, this has given rise to the 
specific name, which means changeable, or changing 
colour. 
THE "APPLE” OF THE BIBLE. 
Botanists regard the Apricot as a native of Armenia, 
ani hence its botanical name of Pruntis Armeniaca. 
Its common name we take to be derived from 
praskokai or praecoce from its being an early ripening 
Plum or fruit. But Canon Tristram, with apparently 
good reason, believes the Apricot to be the " Apple ” 
of the Bible. He says:—"The Apricot is most 
abundant in the Holy Land; everywhere it is com¬ 
mon in highlands and lowlands alike. By the shores 
of the Mediterranean and on the banks of the Jordan, 
in the nooks of Judea, under the heights of Lebanon! 
in the recesses of Galilee, and in the glades of Gilead 
the Apricot flourishes and yields a crop of prodigious 
abundance ; its branches laden with its golden fruit 
may well be compared to ‘ Apples of gold,’ and its 
pale leaves to ' pictures of silver.’ Many times have 
we pitched our tents in its shade; thus verifying the 
w ords, ' I sat down under his shadow with great 
delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.’ ” 
The Violet Disease.—I was taken to the frame 
ground in the Rose Hill Cemetery, Chicago, to look 
at the finest bed of Violets anywhere, and I saw the 
grandest bed of Chickweed possible to conceive of, 
fat and saucy. I was told the only way to keep the 
disease away after August 15th was to let the plants 
get smothered. There certainly were Violets below, 
and I was told that in a day or two the weed would 
be cleared away, the Violets would be housed, and 
then all would be well. Funny idea, isn't it ?— 
Florists' Exchange. 
DEATH FROM MUSH¬ 
ROOMS. 
Mushrooms have been so exceedingly abundant in 
the southern counties, at least this season, as to call 
forth the remarks from many elderly persons that 
they had never before seen them in such quantities. 
Fortunately, no other fungus is so common, indeed 
the deleterious kinds are comparatively rare. Yet 
several fatal cases of poisoning from eating fungi 
have been recorded during the present autumn; in 
no case, however, have we been able to ascertain 
what particular kind of fungus had caused, or was 
supposed to have caused, the fatal result. We 
repeat what we have so often said before, that very 
few fungi are really poisonous in a young state, and 
even Mushrooms in an advanced stage will cause 
irritation and diarrhoea, and may even become 
poisonous. Violent purging may follow the eating 
of Mushrooms the gills of which are nearly black, 
though still firm and undecayed. Another thing to 
be considered is the cooking. There is no doubt 
that the more thoroughly fungi are cooked the less 
likely they are to produce unpleasant effects. In 
view of the deaths that have occurred in conse¬ 
quence, as has been assumed, of eating poisonous 
fungi, a contemporary lately suggested that even the 
true Mushroom should be avoided, because the risk 
of being poisoned is too great. 
Considering the enormous quantities of Mush¬ 
rooms now consumed, both wild and cultivated, the 
number of casualties through mistakes is very small, 
and as it is clearly impossible to prevent people from 
eating them, it would be more to the purpose to 
teach the young to discriminate between the good 
and the bad in fungi. As a matter of fact, country- 
bred persons, of the labouring class especially, are 
able to distinguish a Mushroom from a Toadstool, 
and they are also able to distinguish the Horse 
Mushroom (Agaricus arvensis) from the more 
delicate Agaricus campestris, or true Mushroom. As 
a rule they discard everything else in the shape of a 
fungus, whether it be a Toadstool, an Agaric of any 
kind, or a Devil’s Snuff-box, a Puffball, or Lycoper- 
don. Yet many of the species of Agaricus are 
equally as good as A. campestris, and the giant 
Puffball (Lycoperdon giganteum) is delicious when 
young and solid. At the same time we should 
advise all persons who have not had practical 
instruction in the matter to avoid any and every 
fungus that they are not sure about. In nine cases 
out of ten the only person in a country village 
possessing any botanical knowledge is the “ doctor," 
but his knowledge is rarely of the practical kind. 
In this connection we have a few remarks to make 
on the kind of botanical teaching fostered by the 
science and art department, to say nothing of the 
universities and medical schools. Take the examina¬ 
tion papers of the science and art department for 
example, and we find not a solitary question on 
economic botany, the only branch of the science of 
any real utility to the 3,000 or so candidates that 
present themselves annually. They are examined in 
the physiology and anatomy of plants from a text¬ 
book standpoint, and are asked questions on obscure 
phenomena of plant life that they have no possible 
chance of verifying or observing, or often even of 
understanding; but the kind of knowledge that 
would be most useful, and most easily learnt from 
competent teachers, is wholly ignored. The teaching 
is commenced at the wrong end ; instead of demanding 
a practical acquaintance with plants and their 
properties, questions on tissues and vital functions 
are given, even in the first or elementary stage. It 
is true that the answers are often intelligent and 
good, but the fact remains that few of the candi¬ 
dates could distinguish a Lime tree from an Elm, 
Hemlock from Chervil, the Drop wort from a Parsnip, 
Fool’s Parsley from the genuine plant, or Barley 
from Rye or bearded Wheat. 
We should much like to see the elementary stage, 
at least, almost limited to the discrimination of plants 
and their products, reserving questions on the minute 
structure, growth, and nutrition of plants for the 
advanced stage. A knowledge of the berry-yielding 
plants of the hedges and woods would be far more 
useful than the phenomena of root-pressure, or the 
supposed sources of the carbon and nitrogen of 
plants. What is most deplorable is that few of the 
teachers possess sufficient knowledge of field and 
economic botany to teach it, so they must first be 
taught. But if the department insisted on real 
knowledge instead of book learning, it would soon be 
forthcoming.— British Medical Journal. 
SOCIETIES. 
Royal Horticultural, Nov. 15 th. — As might have 
been expected, the meeting on Tuesday last was not 
a large one. The principal features of the exhibits 
were Chrysanthemums, Orchids, Ferns and Pelar¬ 
goniums. A group of Orchids was exhibited by 
Messrs. Hugh Low & Co., Clapton, prominent in 
which were Cypripedium bellatulum, Oncidium 
tigrinum, Vanda Ivmballiana and other species now 
in season. A similar group was shown by Messrs. 
F. Sander & Co., St. Albans. The more important 
plants in this case were Cypripedium Leeanum 
giganteum, Cattleya labiata albanense, and the 
hybrid Masdevallia Measuresiana. Messrs. B. S. 
Williams & Son, Upper Holloway, also showed a 
small group of Orchids, chiefly Cypripediums in 
variety, Cattleya gigas and a piece of Cymbidium 
gigantea. Two pieces of Angraecum bilobum and 
Cattleya Massiana were staged by C. J. Lucas, Esq. 
(gardener, Mr. G. Duncan), Warnham Court, 
Horsham. A hybrid Cattleya named C. Harrisii 
was shown by Thos. Statter, Esq. (gardener, Mr R. 
Johnson), Stand Hall, Manchester A variety of the 
curious looking Catasetum tabulare, was shown by 
Welbore S. Ellis, Esq., Hazelbourne, Dorking. 
Varieties of Cattleya labiata were shown by R. 
Young, Esq., Fringilla, Linnet Lane, Liverpool, and 
by Mr. Houghton, Walthamstow 1 . A beautiful 
variety of Odontoglossum crispum was shown by 
Messrs. J. Laing & Sons, Forest Hill. A fine piece 
of Cypripedium Morganise burfordiense and a plant 
of C. pavoninum were shown by Sir Trevor Law¬ 
rence, Bart, (grower, Mr. White), Burford Lodge, 
Dorking. Several plants of Cypripedium insigne 
were staged by Mr. Joseph Fitt, Panshanger Gardens, 
Hertford. Several hybrid Cypripediums were ex¬ 
hibited by Messrs J. Veitch & Sons, Chelsea, and 
three of them were certificated. 
A Silver-gilt Flora Medal was awarded to Mr. H. 
B. May, Dyson’s Lane, Upper Edmonton, for an 
extensive collection of Ferns. Some of the more 
striking or uncommon kinds w'ere Lastrea lepida, 
Adiantum Fergusoni, Pteris tremula variegata, 
Platycerium stemaria, and Pteiis tremula Smithiana. 
A collection of Chrysanthemums was staged By 
Mr. G. Wythes, gardener to the Duke of North¬ 
umberland, Syon House, Brentford. Palms were 
stood along the back and small Palms and Maiden¬ 
hair introduced amongst them in front, while the 
flowers themselves were cut with long stems and 
foliage. A Silver Banksian Medal was accorded the 
group. A similar award was made to Messrs. H. 
Cannell & Sons, Swanley, for an attractive group or 
collection of good Pelargoniums set up in a large and 
showy bunches. They also had several stands of cut 
flowers of Chrysanthemums, some of which received 
Awards of Merit. Some stands of Chrysanthe¬ 
mums consisting of large blooms were shown by 
Messrs. J. Veitch & Sons, who also staged a fine pan 
of Begonia decora, having bronzy foliage. Small 
ots of Chrysanthemum flowers were shown by 
Wm. Seward, Esq. (gardener, Mr. J. Shrimpton), 
The Firs, Hanwell ; by Messrs. J. R. Pearson & 
Sons, Chilweil, Notts ; by Mr. Robert Owen, Castle 
Hill, Maidenhead; by Mr. J. Dibbens, Breakespear 
Road, Brockley; by Mr. E. Molyneux, Swanmore 
Park, Swanmore; by Mr. C. E. Shea, The Elms, 
Foot’s Cray, Kent; and by Mr. Blick, gardener to 
Martin Smith, Esq., The Warren, Hayes Common, 
Kent. A basket of Violets was shown by Lord Foley 
(gardener, Mr. Miller), Ruxley Lodge, Esher. Prizes 
were offered by the Society for a group of Chrysan¬ 
themums, and the first prize was awarded to Mr. G. 
Wythes, who had eighteen large bushy plants in pots. 
Some of the best flowered plants were Cullingfordi, 
Val d’Andorre, Elaine, Mrs. Dixon, and Eynsford 
White. 
At a meeting of the Fruit Committee a Bronze 
Banksian Medal was awarded to Mr. Wythes for a 
collection of Melons, packed in open baskets. A 
Melon named Golden Ball was shown by Lord Foley. 
He also showed a dish of the Brown Turkey Fig 
from the second crop. Nineteen varieties of Apples 
for naming were brought up by the Rev. E. S. 
Lowndes, Little Comberton, Pershore. Smaller lots 
for the same purpose were brought up by Mr. 
McDonald, gardener to Sir Chas. Nicholson, Bart., 
Totteridge, Herts; by the Rev. W. G. Bryan, Ling- 
field Vicarage, Surrey; and by W. M. Rose, Esq., 
Ilfracombe. A new Potato named Fidler’s Colossal 
was exhibited by Mr. C. Fidler, Reading; and also 
by Mr. G. Brawn, Walsall. A box of Tomatos 
named Gilbert’s Satisfaction, all in fine form and 
well ripened, was exhibited by Mr Gilbert, Burghley 
Gardens, Stamford. 
